UKC

Hi!

I'm going to Portland this WE and was wondering if wild camping is possible, and if it is what would be the best place to do that?

Thank you for your help!

Benoist

In reply to benoist:

Try a search of the forum, little has changed in the last 5 or 6 years.

In reply to benoist:

Above Church Ope Cove, below the ruined castle is a good spot for a little stealth tent

In reply to benoist:

Minimal wild camping options available.

Cuttings is one (not very wild) option so I'd recommend you be taking the tent down by 8am. Whenever I show up early there, and there's tents around, I make sure to wake them up!

In reply to benoist:

It is not generally recommended but if you need to the little bay in the top north west corner of Dungecroft Quarry Cheyne Cliff is out of sight and less than 2 minutes from the car parking. There are also suitable out of sight places in The Cuttings Boulderfield if you search around.

In reply to benoist:

Probably somewhere under the cuttings is the best spot. If you want to get away from the path a bit you can head as if you are going to the Cuttings, go past the Church Ope (on the right) onto the concrete platform and then take the stairs a short way down to the beach on the right. Not long after you start going down there is a path off to the left and you can follow this along to find your own spot. There are some nice ones further along, closer to the sea.

Portland is a SSSI site so you are not actually allowed to camp there or have fires. Not sure what the fines are. So just be discrete and leave no trace. I've never had any trouble there.

In reply to benoist:

I would not recommend wild camping around the cuttings, unless the locals have changed their habits in the last few years... and don't camp under a cliff whose top can be accessed by said locals as they'll chuck things off.

I used to wild camp done there until returning to our normal spot to find a car had been pushed off the cliff above and was now embedded where my tent would normally be.

The lower boulder field below the cuttings has some good spots, and we've even had 4 tents up (put up after dark) on the grass ledges to the left as you look out from the Cove House Inn with no one bothering us, but then we are quiet, and leave no trace (there was even a portaloo unit for washing in!)

In reply to balmybaldwin:

Also, I've seen some people wild camping around the new cuttings area. But the whole are has had a recent clearance of encroaching scrub and thus leaves little shelter from onlookers for wild camping. There's loads of disused quarries that shouldn't cause a stir if you're quiet and considerate, and don't happen to stumble upon a pop-up rave over the weekend.